The Kyoto Protocol Is in Effect! Around the World, 141 Countries Are Taking the First Steps to Decrease Greenhouse Gases!
News story originally written on February 16, 2005
One hundred and forty-one counties from around the world have agreed to reduce the amount of pollution they release into the air. This will help to slow the amount of global warming! The agreement that each country signed is called the Kyoto Protocol.
The types of air pollution that the countries are trying to reduce through this agreement are called greenhouse gases. These gases trap heat in our atmosphere. So, having more of them causes the planet to warm. People release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere in many ways. One big way is by burning fossil fuels to drive cars, power factories, and warm houses.
Not all countries of the world signed the Kyoto Protocol. Of the greenhouse gases released each year, the countries that signed the agreement cause about half of them. The country that makes the most greenhouse gases, the United States, did not agreed to sign the Kyoto Protocol. In 2001, President George W. Bush decided that the US would not participate. Large developing countries such as India, China, and Brazil are not required to make changes either.
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